United Hatzalah has debuted a new emergency smartphone and tablet computer app called "SOS” that allows users to send out a distress call to United Hatzalah and police with one swipe that includes their exact location.
New Hatzalah Smartphone App May Help Prevent Some Terrorist Kidnappings
Shmarya Rosenberg • FailedMessiah.com
United Hatzalah has debuted a new emergency smartphone and tablet computer app called "SOS” that allows users to send out a distress call simultaneously to United Hatzalah and police with one swipe that includes their exact location.
The app reportedly includes GPS technology that dispatches the call for help to Hatzalah volunteer medics closest to the person making the emergency call and pinpoints the user's exact location. United Hatzalah also says it will monitor each incident until it is cleared by police and its own medics.
The app also notifies family and friends that an emergency is in progress if their contact information is inserted into the system during registration.
The app, which was in the planning and development stages, had its launch speeded up in response the terrorist kidnapping of three Zionist Orthodox teen boys in the West Bank last week.
"Our main mission at United Hatzalah is to get to medical emergencies within two minutes all over the country. With the recent kidnappings, we feel obliged to share our knowledge and technology to provide that extra layer of protection for the people of Israel,” United Hatzalah’s president and founder Eli Beer reportedly said in a press release.
While not intended to act as a replacement for direct verbal communication with police or Hatzalah, the app functions as an emergency security alert system.
The app is available now for users in Israel on sos.nowforce.com in English and Hebrew.